Girls Trip to Vegas - October 4 - 7, 2013

Friday, October 4

A couple of months ago my good friend Michelle said she wanted to plan a girl's weekend in Vegas to celebrate her 40th. It ended up being Michelle, her sister-in-law, Heidi, Sallie, and me. We left Friday, October 4th after getting the kids off to school, so it ended up being about 9:00. Michelle arranged for us to stay at her timeshare condo, which was very nice and roomy. We got settled into our room and then headed into Vegas. We ate dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, a first for me, and it was yummy. Then we went to the Bikefest. We mainly went to the Bikefest to see the country singer, Joe Nicols. Entry into the bikfest got included the concert. We walked around and checked out all the biker get-up and then enjoyed a nice concert by Joe. It was a bit chilly, but we enjoyed it. Then we decided to go to Fremont Street. Not sure what was going on on Fremont Street but it was crazy. Each time you crossed the street you had to wait in line again to be searched and ID'd. We heard roomer that the first Friday of the month was gang night and so there was a lot of security going on. Wasn't the funnest, but we made it through and decided we had enough and left to go back to the room. It was probably about midnight, by the time we got back. 

Saturday, October 5

We took our time getting up. We fixed breakfast and then planned what we wanted to do for the day. We decided we would start on the south end of the strip and then just walk. We walked into a lot of the shops just browsing and checking out things. We went to the top of the Paris Hotel which was really cool. While we were up there we got to see the Belagio fountains go off. It is so fun seeing Vegas from a higher point of view. It's amazing how big it really is. Later that night we went to the Cirque du Soleil show Mystere. It was a lot of fun. The acrobats were amazing. It is hard to believe that people really can do that. We then went to a buffet for dinner. Which didn't end up being very good. I think it was because it was so late and they were about to close. We learned our lesson that buffets are not worth the price. To expensive and you don't eat enough to make it worth it. 

Sunday, October 6

Again we got up and took our time getting ready and fixing breakfast. We then planned our day out. Michelle and Heidi wanted to go play bingo so we dropped them at a casino so they could play and Sallie and I went to the Bodies Museum at the Luxor. That was amazing. Kind of gross at first, but very interesting. Learned a lot about the body that I did not know. Sallie and I then enjoyed a nice frozen yogurt. We went and picked up Michelle and Heidi and then went to Bubba Gumps for lunch/dinner. Bubba Gumps was also a first for me. Very yummy. I love most seafood. Then we went to the Mentalist. I was blown away. I am not sure if you would consider it magic or just plain amazing. He was able to guess people's names, children, spouses, out of the audience. The things he was able to guess was crazy. We had a lot of fun at that show. Then we went to Napoleon's Piano Bar in the Paris. Eric and I went last year to the piano bar and had such a great time I convinced the ladies to check it out. It was a lot of fun, but the crowd there wasn't too exciting and people were having a hard time requesting songs for them to play. We left there and decided we would try and make it to the Stratosphere, but when we got there it was closed, so we headed back to the condo. It was a long and exhausting day.

Monday, October 7

Again we were a little slow getting up and getting going. I went to pay for Michelle's gas to head home and my card was declined. Apparently, they got a little suspicious with my purchases in Vegas. Go figure it would be the day we were trying to get home. I called the credit card company and they were able to reactivate it. Good thing we were dependent on my card to get us home. Michelle's car also died while parked for gas and we had to get a jump start. Her battery is very sensitive and if you live the door open even for a minute the battery dies. We decided we would take a little side trip and go to Hoover Dam before heading home. Sallie has never been to Hoover Dam and really wanted to go. We were then on our way home. Other than gas stops, we drove straight through until Bountiful when we stopped for custard. Another first for me. I have never had custard ice cream. It was yummy and a great treat to end the weekend. We didn't get home until about 8:45 p.m. The kids were already in bed, but they got up and gave me a hug. We had a great time and I am so glad that I got to do it. It's always nice to be able to spend time with good friends.

Trip to Bountiful and Maisie's 5th Grade Pics

September 29th, I have been wanting to take a trip south to do some shopping and just get out of town. I got a bunch of scrapbook pages printed at Costco. Took the kids to a couple stores and just had a great day. On the way home, we stopped in Mantua and took Maisie's pictures. It is funny how my own kids are sometimes the hardest to take pictures of. I still can't believe how beautiful Maisie is and how grown up she is. It just doesn't seem possible that I am old enough to have a pre-teen. Haha. I am so glad I get to be my little Maisie Moo's mom. I am one lucky momma.

September 28, 2013

Today was a busy day. I had to come to work to take photos of the Ambassadors. It wasn't too bad cause they fed me Costa Vida. One of my favorite places to eat. I could eat mexican food any day. I also had a family photo session later. I tried to get a few things done around the house before leaving to take photos of a family in Mantua. October is going to be a little crazy with photo sessions. It seems to always happen that everyone wants photos in the same month. I keep telling myself I won't schedule so many, but I have a hard time saying no. Afterwards, I picked the kids up and we went to Twizlberry and then stopped and got the movie Life of PI. It was a pretty good movie. Surprisingly the kids even liked it. I worked on editing pictures while we watched the movie.

Parker's photos - Sept 23

I finally took Parker's 1st grade pictures. He was such a goof ball and is at that stage that he just doesn't know how to smile. His smile ends up in buck teeth and squinted eyes. We did a lot of practicing and by the end he was getting better. I had to bribe him with a treat (which he didn't know what it was until we were done). He has been wanting the Raphael face mask and I told him I had to order it and it would be here in a few days, but I was able to find it at Wal-mart, so when we were finished I surprised him with it and we snapped a few pics with him being a ninja turtle. He asked, "Mom, do I look like a real ninja turtle?" Of course, I had to tell him he totally looked like a real ninja turtle. Afterwards, we went to Twizlberry for a real treat. It is one of our favorite places. It is so hard to believe how much they change each year. Parker is getting more and more handsome and turning into a young man.

September 20 - Wellsville Camping

We decided to throw in one more camping trip. We didn't want to go far, since Eric wouldn't be getting home from work until almost 8:00. I had a few things to throw in the trailer, but I decided to hurry and do a half bushel of peaches before he got home. I was cutting it so close, cause as soon as he pulled in the driveway I was pulling the last bottles out of the water bath. He just rolls his eyes at me. I try to cram too much into my day, but knew the peaches would not be good by the time we got home on Sunday, so they had to be done. We pulled into the spot at Wellsville Reservoir just before dark. We set up camp and then just hung out in the trailer. Eric and the kids played Farkle while I put labels on pictures. I had recently printed over a years worth of pictures (750) that needed to be labeled and put in photo albums. That was my project for the weekend. Saturday, the kids went for a bike ride around the reservoir while I walked around 5 times, which ended up being just under 3 miles. It is a very nice paved trail around the water. Eric and Parker ran to the gas station so they could go fishing later. Then Maisie and I went into town so I could get more photo sheets. I really wanted to get my photos in the binders, so I didn't have to worry about it. It was about 3:00 when we decided to go fishing. Parker caught one right off the bat. We didn't catch any more. It was pretty windy and hard to keep the line tight or cast out in the water. I made crusted chicken and spaghetti with tomatoes and zucchini and then cooked the fish. It was my first time cooking fish and it turned out really good.

We had a fire, but not for very long. It became really windy and we were worried about the ashes blowing everywhere and starting a fire. That night I didn't sleep hardly at all. I was half tempted to have Eric pack up the trailer and go home in the middle of the night. It felt like the trailer was going to blow over the whole night. We packed up in the morning and was home by about 11:00. When the camping season comes to an end, I am sad, but relieved in a way. There are a ton of things I want to get done around the house.

September 13 - 15, 2013

I was so looking forward to the weekend. It has been a long week. Eric picked up the kids at 1:00 from school, so I was able to go straight home. I wanted to go over to my sister's for the night, but Eric wanted me to come home. Cause apparently I entertain him and he is bored if I am not home. I had to laugh at that. Not sure why when I am home nobody is bored, cause they all sit on the couch and watch tv while I am busy running around doing house stuff. I had picked a big bowl of tomatoes the night before, so I was debating on making a half batch of salsa. I also have about 12 zucchini's out of the garden, so Maisie convinced me to make zucchini bread. While it was in the oven, Maisie and I ran to the store to buy peppers for the salsa. When we got home, I prepared the tomatoes and peppers, so that in the morning all I had to do was put it in the pan and cook it. I must be getting old, cause I just can not stay up late any more. We were all in bed by about 10:00. I woke up about 8:00 Saturday and put the salsa in the pan to start cooking. I decided to go for a two mile walk and then when I got home, I finished getting everything ready for the salsa. Parker had been begging me all morning to take him to Walmart so he could by the Ninja Turtle van with his birthday money. I told him we weren't going until 1:00 and that was just forever. We went to Walmart and got his van and then went to Macey's to pick up his birthday cake to take to grandma's later that night. We headed to my parents at about 6:00 for cake and ice cream. It was much easier having cake and ice cream at my parent's rather than making everyone come over to our house. Everyone is so busy on Saturday's it just worked out to do it later Saturday evening. We left my parents about 10:00 to come home. Sunday we spent the morning cleaning the house and doing laundry. My Sunday's are usually not relaxing days. That is the day that I choose to do the laundry and clean the house. It just ends up being the best day for me. That way I can enjoy my Friday and Saturday and then clean the house to get ready for the week ahead. I got the kids to help me out a bit and then we were able to relax the rest of the day.

Parker's Birthday - 7 Years Old

We have been waiting for this day for a long time. Parker has been counting the months and then the days to his birthday. It just could not get here soon enough. He went to bed the night before with such a big smile on his face, cause he knew when he woke up that it was his birthday. It was so fun seeing the excitement in his eyes. When I woke him up on his birthday by singing to him "Happy Birthday" he had the biggest smile on his face. You could just see in his eyes that he couldn't believe the day was finally here. When we got to my office he had to make sure that everyone knew it was his birthday. When he told Beth, the dean, it was his birthday she pulled out of her pocket the change she had just received from buying her coffee, $4. You have never seen a boy so excited and so grateful for receiving $4. He gave her a great big hug. After he left for school, Beth says to me, "I have never seen a boy so excited over $4.00." He is one grateful little boy. 

I bought a salad at our new cafe, Emma's Nook, and took it over to school and ate lunch with him. It just made his day. 

He had to wait until 7:30 when dad got home to open his presents. I thought it was going to be pure torture, but I tried to keep his little mind occupied. We stopped at Twizlberry and had frozen yogurt for his birthday and then when we got home he went and played with a couple of neighbor kids and that kept him happy for awhile. He came home at 7:00 and only had a half hour to wait before he got to open his presents. When Eric opened the door, he couldn't wait another minute. He had to open his presents. He got all he asked for. Michaelangelo, Shredder, Splinter, and April from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. He kept giving me hugs and telling me, "Thank you, Mom." Eric had to tease him, cause he didn't thank him. He knows who really bought them. LOL. He was happy as a jay bird. He had the best birthday ever. 

My Dearest Parker,

I can not believe my baby is growing up. I look at you and can not believe you are already 7. You are suppose to be my little boy forever. The years have gone by way too fast. You are growing into such a handsome, smart, young man. I love that you enjoy reading and are getting really good at it. You really enjoy school and have made some great friends. You love playing with your friends both at school and in the neighborhood. You will play with the boys in the neighborhood any chance you get. 

You love toys. I usually do not have a clean front room for very long. The coffee tableand floor are always covered in your toys. You just love to play. None of your toys go unplayed with. You manage to mix and match all your toys while playing. Your blocks have become guns, dinosaurs, transformers, jumps for your cars and monster trucks, or anything else you can come up. Your new favorite is Ninja Turtles. Your imagination and creativeness is amazing. You also love playing games on your tablet. 

You are such an amazing, fun boy. I truly am grateful I am your mom. I love you to the moon and back. 

Love Mom